So, you just planned to mount a scope on your rifle, but couldn’t mount? You might be here for the same reason because you were thinking how to mount a scope on a rifle. In fact, mounting a scope on a rifle can be a tough task if you are a total beginner. You have to be sure whether the scope is securely mounted or not to prevent untimely firing.

However, once you have mounted the scope in a proper way for the first time, you’d certainly be able to perform the task easily the next time you’d be planning to mount the scope. Focusing on your safety and for the prevention of the sudden firing of the improperly mounted scope, we have come up with a special guide to make sure you’d be mounting a scope on a rifle in the perfect way.

What Is A Rifle Scope?

According to Wikipedia, a rifle scope simply refers to the telescopic sight on a rifle. With the use of a rifle scope, you will be able to see your targets properly so that you can aim towards them in a precise and accurate way. Due to this special feature, these scopes are used by many people in their rifles in the present time.

There are thousands of different manufacturers who are producing outstanding rifle scopes suitable for different rifles. You can have a lot of different options available for you to choose from for your rifle as well. But, things aren’t the same now as they were before.

How Are The Modern Rifle Scopes Different?

Over the period of time since rifles were developed for the first time, metallic telescopic sights have stayed as an essential component for everyone who owns a rifle. However, since the last few decades, rifle manufacturers have been removing rifle scopes in their newer rifle models, which means you have to choose a rifle scope for your rifle all by yourself. This doesn’t mean the development of rifle scopes stopped since manufacturers started this system while manufacturing rifles.

In the past few decades, several rifle scopes with breathtaking features have been developed. The modern riflescopes are equipped with the modern technologies, which means the individual development of rifle scopes have grown all the way long since manufacturers stopped combining them with rifle models. This is certainly an advantage for every modern rifle owners who are planning to mount a scope on their rifles. The modern rifle scopes can be used with any sort of rifles including the ones used in military, training, sports, seasonal hunting or just dedicated paper-punching.

So, what can be done now?

Since you can’t find rifle scopes pre-mounted with the modern rifles, it can be difficult for you to mount them yourself. This is the reason why we are presenting this guide to you to reduce all the confusion in your mind regarding the best way to mount a scope on a rifle securely.

How To Mount A Scope On A Rifle?

A rifle scope is an essential equipment for every modern rifle users who are looking to shoot at a long distance. As discussed above, you have to mount the rifle scope in a secure way in your rifle. A single mistake can lead you to get serious injuries. When you keep going through this guide further, you will find out the exact things you will be needing and the proper method of mounting a rifle scope on a rifle.

What’ll you need?

Before getting started, you need to make sure that you possess the following equipment:

Step-by-Step Scope Mounting Instructions

Now that you have all the necessary equipment with you, you can get started with the mounting process.

Getting Started: Cleaning Mounting Surfaces

The first you need to do while mounting a scope on a rifle is to clear everything including dirt, residue, and grease from the mounting area. You should make your rifle ready to get mounted up with the scope mounting base. Removing all the dirt will help you to prevent improper seating for the scope base on your rifle. When you remove the plug screws along the top of the receiver, you will be able to degrease every screw holes. While doing so, you also need to use a suitable screwdriver for removing the screws. Removing the screws properly will prevent your entire task from getting spoiled.

Securing the Scope

Once you have cleaned your rifle properly along with the mounting surfaces, you need to place it in a lead sled or any secure device before getting started with the mounting process. You also need to level your rifle while placing it for mounting. What you need to do here is to place a short level above the receiver so that you will be able to adjust the rifle in a proper position. You will be able to find a short level in any sort of small tool package that you own.

Mounting the Scope Base

Once you are ready to mount the scope base on your rifle, you need to put some gun oil on the contact area which can help in the prevention of rust formation inside the receiver and the scope base. When your gun moves backward after shooting, some of the screws in it might move and get off the gun after some period of time. This is why inserting thread locker in the screw threads might be a good choice to ensure that the screws are placed and tightened properly on the gun.

However, while choosing a thread locker, you need to go for a removable one rather than a permanent one or red Loctite. If you use a permanent threadlocker, you need to heat it up to a temperature of 500°F for the screws to get loose. It can be a tough task for you to heat your receiver up to such temperature so that you’d be able to remove the thread locker. You might even deteriorate the proper functioning of your rifle. When you have placed the thread locker and tightened it down the scope base, you need to take a look at the receiver to find out whether the screws are moving or not. Checking the screws can be easier if you use your hand to try moving them manually.

Placing the Scope Rings

Now that you have mounted up the scope base on your rifle, you need to start mounting the scope rings. To do this, you have to remove every screw along with the other parts of the scope rings and organize them properly. First, you can try mounting the lower part of the rings. Then, you can try to fit your scope on it before placing the upper rings. If you are using a pictanny base in your case while tightening the screws, you need to push the rings against the nearest rail so that the rings will be able to get placed against the rail. Doing so will also make the rings stay idle while you shoot with your rifle.

What you need to do now is to place the scope under the scope rings mounted on your rifle. The scope rings need to be at a proper distance from the objective bell as well as the turrets so that the necessary adjustments can be done. You can insert a thread locker and tighten the screws once you are sure the scope rings are far and there is a proper spacing for placement. Since you shouldn’t tighten the screws right now, you need to tighten the screws with your own hand to set up the eye relief.

Setting up the Eye Relief

To set up the eye relief, you can just pick up your rifle and hold it in the same way you do while shooting. The next thing you need to be doing here is to close your eyes and hold the rifle on your shoulder. Now, you need to look for a suitable position to place your cheek on the comb of your stock. Doing this will result in getting a suitable placement area for your rifle. Your rifle won’t have to rely on the optic for positioning your head. When you have placed the rifle at your shoulder in a proper spot, you can now open your eyes and look for the most accurate eye relief. You can now adjust the scope by moving it in any way you like to seek for a better placement area. With that being done, you will be able to shoot without seeing the black halo. You will also be able to obtain a proper view when you have done all the steps in a proper way.

After setting up the eye relief, you may not be totally sure about the prevention of black halo. If you see it again, you can adjust the scope rings by looking for a suitable placement spot.

Leveling your Scope

The next thing you need to do is to level the scope. You can do so by placing the rifle at a suitable spot and placing your level on the turret at the center. Now, you can adjust your scope properly until your reticle stays at a perpendicular and parallel position from your bore.

When your reticle is leveled, you can now obtain a precise compensate for windage as well as elevation during the shooting period. Once the scope is adjusted properly, you are ready to tighten every screw at your scope rings in a cross pattern that you did while setting up a tire. Doing this will save your time preventing you to adjust the scope rings again at both front and rear of your scope. If you want highly accurate results, you might want to keep the threadlocker dry every time before you are getting ready for the shooting period.

Sighting in your Focus

You might want to dial in ocular focus to be able to obtain a proper view through your scope. With that being done, you will be able to focus on the reticle properly. However, you may not be able to do so in case you haven’t adjusted the reticle properly. If you have aimed your rifle towards a high contrast background, you can make sure that the reticle is properly focused by adjusting the scopes diopter. With everything done correctly, you will be able to utilize your rifle scope properly with a clear reticle picture.

Does The Mounting Vary From Rifle to Rifle?

There are a lot of different types of rifles available out there. The mounting process is totally similar for every type of rifles. However, in case of some rifles, the use of scope mounting base may be useless. For those rifles, you may not require a scope mounting base while mounting a scope on your rifle. In most rifles, a scope mounting base can be used for mounting a scope on them properly. Using a scope mounting base will also make sure that the scope is seated properly on your rifle. It will also help you tighten the screws with the prevention of any sort of movements that might result in the screws being lost while using your rifle.

Conclusion

Once you have gone through this guide properly without any confusion, now you will know how to mount a scope on a rifle and be able to mount a scope on your rifle properly and securely. While mounting a scope, you need to make sure that all the screws are tightened properly and the necessary equipment are placed and adjusted properly. It isn’t recommended for you to use your rifle without proper adjustment of the essential equipment.

If you have any confusion regarding the processes mentioned in this guide, you can feel free to write down about your issue in detail in the comments. We’d love to respond you right back away.

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Hello! We are Zulfiqur & Nawrin, and we’ve been constantly traveling around Europe for the past 3 years. Adventure travel & getting to know historical places are our passions. Keeping that in mind, we started writing about equipment, techniques, and tips that can help you out camping, hiking, shooting activities and in difficult survival situations. As we continue blogging here, we might as well be traveling to another place now. We just can’t bear the thought of not seeing a new place, not meeting new people and not knowing a part of the history. Do not hesitate to contact us at any point of time: rogerthat@itishooting.com